Poll: Americans read Bible literally

(RNS) Most Americans believe in a literal interpretation of biblical stories such as Moses parting the Red Sea, according to an ABC News poll that also showed the vast majority of Americans do not blame Jews for the death of Jesus.

The ABC News PrimeTime poll found that six in 10 Americans surveyed consider biblical accounts of Moses parting the Red Sea, Noah’s Ark, and God creating the world in six days to be true, “word for word.” Evangelical Protestants were most likely to hold this view, at about 90 percent.

About 30 percent of those surveyed said the stories are not true “word for word,” but are meant “as a lesson, not to be taken literally.”

Fewer than one in 10 Americans surveyed said Jews are responsible for the death of Jesus, a question thrust into public debate by the controversial Mel Gibson film The Passion of The Christ.